Home-school flying lessons, courtesy of MacDill Air Foce Base

You might see their planes and uniforms and maybe you’ve even seen video of how they refuel planes in mid-air, but those who fly for the Air Force face a challenging mission shared by many these days.

MacDill KC-135s to fly over Tampa Bay in show of thanks to COVID-19 first responders

The Tampa Bay area got skipped in the first round of first-responder flyovers by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds and the Navy’s Blue Angels, but the hometown folks at MacDill Air Force Base are planning their own show of support.

Special Operations military conference goes virtual

Combat demonstrations and military vehicle displays usually attract crowds of observers each year during the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference (SOFIC), but concern over large gatherings due to COVID-19 has forced the event to move online. 

Pentagon: Anyone hospitalized for coronavirus 'disqualified' from joining military without waiver

Coronavirus survivors will be barred from entering the military unless they are granted a waiver from the branch they are seeking to join, a defense official told Fox News, as the agency continues to figure out how to train America's fighting force in the midst of a global pandemic.

29 service members awarded Purple Hearts for brain injuries in Iran attack

About 110 U.S. service members were diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries after the Iranian ballistic missile attack at al-Asad Air Base in Iraq on Jan. 8. Now the U.S. military has approved 29 service members for the Purple Heart medal.

MacDill reservists on mission to battle enemy unlike any other: COVID-19

With a roar and lift-off in a C-17, 12 reservists from Tampa's MacDill Air Force Base began their mission to treat COVID-19 patients across the country.

No military honors: Sarasota veterans group honors fallen hero in lieu of funeral

As the novel coronavirus pandemic changes the way America does just about everything, including military funerals, but his community did not want Lewis's service and sacrifice to go unrecognized.

Reserve medics based at MacDill Air Force Base activated to fight COVID-19 in New York

A group of doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists who are from Tampa and in the Air Force Reserves are now working in local hospitals in New York City to help with the coronavirus pandemic.

MacDill Reserve Citizen Airmen head to New York to combat COVID-19

On Sunday doctors and nurses assigned to the 927th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Air Force Base left to combat COVID-19 in New York.

USS Theodore Roosevelt commander: Crew needs to be isolated after 200 positive coronavirus tests

In a desperate plea for help, the commanding officer of the deployed aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt says his entire crew of roughly 5,000 sailors needs to be isolated after up to 200 onboard have tested positive for coronavirus.

NJ National Guardsman 1st US service member to die from coronavirus, governor announces

A member of the New Jersey National Guard died on Saturday after being hospitalized for over a week, becoming the first U.S. servicemember to succumb to coronavirus.

MacDill declares public health emergency after 3 test positive for COVID-19

Officials at MacDill Air Force Base announced its first case of COVID-19 last week. Monday, the base declared a public health emergency after two more tested positive. 

Officials: US airstrikes underway against Iran-backed militia group that hit Iraq base

The U.S. launched airstrikes in Iraq Thursday, American officials said, targeting the Iranian-backed Shia militia members believed responsible for the rocket attack that killed and wounded American and British troops at a base north of Baghdad.

MacDill postpones AirFest to help stop spread of coronavirus

The news came less than two hours after the governor called on local governments to cancel all “mass gatherings." The semi-annual airshow routinely draws as many as 500,000 people to the South Tampa base over two days.